Tag Archives | DIY

Crafty Halloween Treats

By on October 1, 2012 in DIY

Crafty Halloween Treats

For years I’ve been making my popcorn Witches Hands and Sucker Pumpkins for school parties and home entertaining.

Here are a few ideas for crafting Halloween treats and entertaining:

Sucker Pumpkin

With cake pops being all the rave this year, this sucker pumpkin would be perfect to hold Halloween Cake Pops as well as suckers.

I made one of these pumpkins for my daughter’s preschool a few years ago and they still use it every year around Halloween.

Simply take a craft pumpkin (I found mine at Michael’s) and drill holes about two inches apart using a drill bit the size of a sucker stick, approximatly 11/64 of an inch.

Halloween DIY Crafts

 

Witches Hands

I use food handler gloves (non latex) found from Smart & Final or anywhere food service supplies are sold, and fill with candy corns for the fingernails, popcorn and tie off with black string.  Then I use a spider ring to decorate the ring finger.

Halloween DIY Crafts

Witches Hands

 

Spooktacular Punch

Spooktacular Punch Ingredients:

  1. Kool-Aid Grape or Ghoul-Aid mix- 2 packets
  2. Agave Nectar- 1 cup
  3. All Natural Lemon-Lime Soda
  4. Orange Peels

Halloween DIY Crafts

Halloween DIY Crafts

 

For Halloween Dinner Fun- Dinner In A Pumpkin Recipe:

Dinner In Pumpkin

Dinner In A Pumpkin

 

Weekly Meal Planning for Busy Families

Weekly Meal Plan

 

 

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Betty Jean’s Boutique

By on June 14, 2012 in Busy Mom Living The Dream, DIY

I have a grandma- “Grams” whose name is Betty Jean.  Grams was with me during those difficult years when Connor was so sick, and she helped take care of his twin sister, Cassidy.  Now she visits us about once a month for a week.

Today, I helped Grams take photos of her latest creation- the Playing Cards Cozy.  When Grams is here visiting, she’s always telling the latest stories of her friends at the Senior Center.  Betty Jean has a close-knit group of friends, and- to listen to her talk about them- they sound like a gang from high school, like the Pink Ladies.  They play cards two to three times a week ritually while they snack on food they’ve each brought to share.

Hours of card playing over the years has caused cramps in Grams’ fingers, so she created her Playing Cards Cozy.  Immediately, she was the trendy girl at the Senior Center with her fancy colorful card organizer, and all of her friends wanted one.  Now, they’re like the coveted Pink Ladies jackets- only their gang has them and everyone else is envious.  If you have a “Grams” in your life who could use a Playing Cards Cozy, you can find them in her Etsy Shop called “Betty Jean’s Boutique“.

And I just had to share the photos because I think they’re adorable.  That’s my Grams!

PlayingCardsCozy

Playing Cards Cozy

DIY

Stay tuned, because Betty Jean has promised to show me step-by-step how to make this adorable craft to post for all of my DIY friends out there!

 

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How To Make A Pinata

By on May 2, 2012 in DIY

How To Make A Pinata At Home

Looking for a fun project to make at home for Cinco de Mayo?  The girls and I decided to make a pinata at home for the first time and had a blast.

How To Make Pinata

How To Make A Pinata At Home

Here’s what you’ll need to make your own festive pinata at home:

  1. balloon
  2. newspaper
  3. 1 cup flour & 2 cups water mixed together for paste
  4. scissors
  5. kite string
  6. crepe paper to decorate
  7. glue
  8. candy

Here is a step-by-step tutorial:

 

Step 1:  Lay down some newspaper because it’s going to be messy!  Then tear some of the newspaper into strips.

how to make a pinata

tear newspaper into strips

 

Step 2:  Blow up a balloon

pinata tutorial

blow up balloon

 

Step 3:  Dip newspaper strips into paste an layer onto balloon leaving 3-inches open around the tip of balloon.  You’ll want to have at least 3 or 4 layers, and there’s no need to allow each layer to dry individually- just pile it on!

dip newspaper strips into paste and layer onto balloon

 

Step 4:  Allow balloon to dry overnight.  You can use a medium-size bowl to prop your balloon up.

this is what your pinata should look like drying overnight

 

Step 5:  Once paper is dry, pop the balloon and pull it out.

pop the balloon

 

Step 6:  It’s time to decorate!  Using crepe paper and glue, create any design on your pinata.

time to decorate

 

use scissors on crepe paper to create fringe

 

7.  Fill the bottom of the pinata with crumpled crepe paper to help with better distribution of candy

crumpled crepe paper allows for better distribution of candy

 

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

How To Make Pinata

time for candy!

For dinner ideas this Cinco de Mayo visit:

cinco de mayo recipes

 

 

 

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Snack Organizing

By on April 15, 2012 in Survival Guide for Busy Moms

Home Reorganizing

I’m tackling organizing projects in my home one at a time in my Reorganizing 2012 Campaign.  So why was organizing my snacks near the top of my list?

There are many reasons.

First, it’s the beginning step to reorganizing my pantry.  By removing all of my snack items and storing them in easy-to-reach containers, I’m creating more breathing space to organize pantry items.

And, the most motivating reason for me is to save time.  How can organizing my snacks save time, you wonder?  It’s simple.  With all our family activities: dance, gymnastics, day-trips and vacations, my kids can pack snacks on their own by making it easy for them to choose from.  It’s like having our own home snack store… the Spilsbury Snack Shop!

Organize Snacks Step-By-Step

Step 1:  Remove all snack items from the pantry

The first step in reorganizing any space is to start with a clean slate and see what you need to work with.  By removing all of the snacks from my pantry and seeing them in one place, it was easy for me to decide how I was going to categorize and store them and what size containers I would need.

Snack Organizing

remove all snacks from the pantry

Step 2:  Find Your Tools

Find the perfect containers to fit your style, your space… and your snacks.  I decided on glass mason jars- 4 large and 4 medium to fit my long countertop.

home organizing snacks

Glass Mason Jars- on sale here for $22

 

Because I love to label everything, I decided to use chalkboard paint on my jars.  Here is a quick tutorial for creating your own Chalkboard Paint Mason Jars:

DIY Chalkboard Paint jars

Tutorial DIY Chalkboard Paint Jars

Step 3:  Cold Storage

I found both of these bins at Target to store cold snacks in the refrigerator.  Using insulated bags, the kids know where to go to choose snacks to pack.

cold snacks for on-the-go

 

snack organizing

this snack tote came from the $1 bin at Target

 

The Economics of Organizing

Staying organized saves time and money.  Period.

By keeping snacks “at-a-glance”, I won’t overbuy at the grocery store because of not knowing how many cookies or fruit snacks we have at home.

While we’re out running around all day, here is a breakdown of what on-the-go snacking costs if you eat out or tote your snacks:

 

 Notice the difference in snack nutrition?  I also estimate that we save about $650 a year by having the kids pack their snacks.  How’s that for some “food for thought”.

 

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